Fairfax County ICE detainer was not honored for a Honduran national accused of child sex crimes, and the man is now back in federal custody after a subsequent arrest by immigration officers, according to the Department of Homeland Security.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement arrested Oscar Evaristo Nunez on Sept. 15 during a targeted enforcement action, DHS said Wednesday. The agency said Nunez had previously been taken into custody on Aug. 27, 2025, on charges that included aggravated sexual battery involving children and offenses tied to the non-consensual recording of an undressed minor.
ICE lodged a detainer with the Fairfax County Adult Detention Center two days after that 2025 arrest. Federal officials said the local facility did not honor the request and released Nunez without notifying ICE.
Fairfax County ICE detainer dispute fuels political tension
The episode has intensified a long-running dispute between the Trump administration and Virginia officials over cooperation with federal immigration enforcement. In a statement, DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin credited ICE personnel for apprehending Nunez and criticized local leaders in Fairfax County for declining to comply with the detainer.
Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger, a Democrat, was not in office when the 2025 arrest occurred or when the detainer was filed. She took office in January 2026. Since then, her administration has reduced certain forms of state participation in federal immigration enforcement, including directing state agencies to end agreements with ICE under the 287(g) program.
A Fairfax County representative did not immediately respond to a request for comment, according to DHS. The department also said Nunez unlawfully entered the United States near Arizona around September 2003.
Nunez remains in ICE custody pending immigration proceedings, officials said. The episode adds to a series of recent controversies involving sexual misconduct cases, including those detailed in Chaldean anger turns toward Martin Manna — and the Church — over silence in brother’s hidden-camera case.
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